A brilliant Newcastle outfit - The Animals - became the venue’s first house band before finding fame and fortune, and by the time the club finally closed its doors in 1968, it had played host to some of rock’s biggest new names.

How about this little line-up? Pink Floyd, The Who, The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, Cream, John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, The Spencer Davis Group, Jeff Beck and, towards the end of the club’s life, a young band called Status Quo - among others.

But it was on this night 50 years ago that the Club A’Gogo witnessed the outrageous and electrifying talent that was Jimi Hendrix.

The American quitarist, in fact, played two sets at the venue - one at 8pm in the under-18s room, the second in the Jazz Lounge at 2am.

In the audience for the first show was a certain 13-year-old schoolboy called James Bradford - later known to us as Auf Wiedersehen, Pet star Jimmy Nail.

Also in attendance was a 15-year-old pupil from St Cuthbert’s Grammar School called Gordon Sumner, who would be given the nickname Sting a few years later and make rather a big success of himself in the decades that followed.

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The club, meanwhile, was owned in its early years by a man with the reputation of being “Mr Newcastle” who had certain “connections”. Mike Jeffrey would go on to manage The Animals and Jimi Hendrix. He died in a plane crash in 1973.

As for the punters, five decades on, the bright young things who flocked to the Club A’Gogo will be in their 60s now, but the memories of those heady days remain vivid.

“The Gogo, in the 1960s - fantastic days. Mods, herringbone jackets, Hush Puppies,” recalls one former patron. “You could actually park your Vespa outside the door of the Gogo,” he added, “and be seen going in.”

Another said: “It was a great, intimate venue where everyone literally rubbed shoulders with the best R’n’B stars of the mid 60s - and all for a small entry fee.

“Great atmosphere, but lousy burgers from a hatch at the side, so I remember!”

And yet another former club-goer recalls: “The Gogo was a great club, but very cliquey and extremely tough.

“One night in 1968, Celtic played Newcastle United in a friendly at St James’ Park and the town was full of Scottish fans. They tried to crash the Gogo and there was mayhem.

“The bouncers were armed with hockey sticks and it was like a scene from The Alamo.”

Sounds a fun night!

Photographs of the fabled Club A’Gogo are thin on the ground. If you have any, we’d love to see them.